


turning pages

by knightswatch



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Beetle Hunting, Birthday Fluff, Boys Kissing, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-10
Updated: 2016-06-10
Packaged: 2018-07-14 06:47:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7158080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knightswatch/pseuds/knightswatch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His mother is going to tut at him later, for getting dirty in his nice clothes, but right now Tooru doesn't care about that, he just needs to find a beetle.</p>
<p>A stupid, ugly beetle for his stupid, ugly best friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	turning pages

Oikawa Tooru, age twelve, does not know much about catching _beetles_.

Really, he doesn't understand why anyone would want to know how to catch them. (Except that he _is_ trying now, and it's proving more difficult than expected.)

He's muddy, and half-stuck under a bush, and probably bleeding from where a thorn caught his cheek, and he's _frustrated_. He whines, scraping the stick in his hand through the dirt and shaking his head. "C'mon, Beetle-chan! We're going to be _late_!"

Tooru sighs, setting the stick down and trying to rub at his face, only succeeding in getting more dirt on his cheeks. His mother is going to tut at him later, for getting dirty in his nice clothes, but right now Tooru doesn't care about that, he just needs to find a beetle.

A stupid, ugly beetle for his stupid, ugly best friend.

He continues rooting around under the bushes until twilight bleeds purple in the sky, until he's covered in tiny scratches from thorns and tall grass, until he misses the birthday party that Hajime's family threw for him and Hajime comes looking for him.

"What are you doing?" He growls, pulling the bush out of the way to find Tooru sitting on his butt in the dirt with an empty jar in his hands. Tooru is barely sniffling back tears, rubbing at his dirty cheeks and looking up at Hajime with his lip stuck out in a pout.

"I was _trying_ to get your birthday present!" He wails, feeling the tears threaten to overwhelm him. Hajime always complains when he cries, and Tooru doesn't want to get called a _baby_ on top of everything. "I couldn't find one and I missed your p- party!"

"Find _what_?" Hajime demands, squatting down next to Tooru now and cocking his head to the side.

"A _beetle_!" Tooru is definitely crying now, tears carving tracks down his dirty cheeks. Hajime looks at him with a frown before gathering the hem of his shirt in one hand, using it to wipe some of the mess off of Tooru's face with a groan. Tooru continues, hiccuping his way through his words. "I- I wanted to g- give it to you! For your b- birthday!"

"You know that they're _nocturnal_ right?" Hajime sighs, dropping his hand and shaking his head with a little frown. "Stop crying."

"S- sorry," Tooru mumbles, even if he isn't really. Hajime rolls his eyes, but there's a grin at the corners of his mouth when he picks up the jar that Tooru stuffed with grass and twigs to make a home for the bug (if he had found one). "I was gonna name it Andromeda."

Hajime is _actually_ smiling now, poking his fingers into the dirt softly. "I'll show you how to find one, okay?"

Tooru sniffles and nods his head, crouching closer to Hajime. "I'm not touching it. They're gross."

"You're gross," Hajime shoots back without missing a beat.

* * * 

Oikawa Tooru, age eighteen, is digging in the dirt for beetles.

He only remembers a few things about how to catch them--mostly that it has to be done at _night_. (He also remembers that they're terrifying and creepy, but he's trying to ignore that fact.)

It's not quite late, but the sun is down and there's a buzz of crickets in the air around him, the sounds of night creatures just starting to wake up. Behind him, there's the whisper of feet on the grass behind him, and Tooru doesn't have to turn to know who it is.

"Can I ask what you're doing in the bushes outside my room, Shittykawa?"

Tooru lifts his head with a wide smile on his face. He's managed _not_ to get himself covered in dirt, poking at the soft earth with a stick. "Finding your birthday present."

"You better not be giving me _dirt_ for my birthday," he growls, squatting down next to Tooru anyway. Closer than he might be to anyone else--Tooru can feel the warmth of Hajime on his skin with only a few centimeters separating them. Hajime seems relaxed, despite his tone, and Tooru bumps their shoulders together gently.

"I'm catching you a stag beetle," he hums, turning another rock over and listening to Hajime's muffled laughter at the shell of his ear. An arm reaches and wraps around his side, Hajime's fingers twisting the soft fabric of his shirt idly.

"You're going to name it something stupid, aren't you?"

"I was _thinking_ of calling it Hubble," he turns to grin at Hajime only to find the both of them closer together than he expects, with Hajime's face a few centimeters away. Red splashes over Hajime's cheeks and he jerks his head away, dropping his hand.

"T- that's what I mean by stupid."

"Were you trying to _kiss_ me Iwa-chan? How lewd."

"Shut up!" He snarls before sinking down slightly further to sulk, stealing a glance at Tooru's face. "What if I was?"

"Then you should be more _romantic_ about it," Tooru smirks, dusting his hands off and catching the side of Hajime's face, turning it so they're facing one another again, grinning before pressing a soft kiss to Hajime's lips.

"Happy birthday, Iwa-chan!" He giggles when they break apart, and rather than getting scolded like Tooru expects, Hajime smiles, tugging him in for another kiss.

"Yeah. Thanks."


End file.
